The Testament Of Ann Lee (2025) Dir: Mona Fastvold

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I really did not know what to expect from this historical drama, directed by Mona Fastvold, and written by Fastvold and Brady Corbet - the pair behind the Oscar-winning film; 'The Brutalist', but the trailer had compelled me to go and see it, with its vivid imagery, interesting art style, and seemingly cult-like story. I should have looked into the story more, but I was so caught-up by the excellent trailer that I went in to the theatre otherwise blind.

The film had what I thought was an initially very compelling score, from composer Daniel Blumberg. However, it quickly descended into a misguided and forceful soundtrack, which desperately wanted its audience to think its accompanying scenes were dramatic or interesting. The musical sequences had strong choreography, but were lyrically vapid, repetitive, and monotonous. They seemed to be designed to be as deliberately loud and intense as possible, to keep viewer attention.

The 35mm-style cinematography was visually appealing, and easily my second favourite aspect of the film. However, the so-called visions of the protagonist were very basic and unimaginative, despite how indescribable and fantastical they were supposed to be. And yet, as was the case with the recent 'Wuthering Heights' adaptation, making your film look beautiful does not make it good - style over substance is an all-too-common cinematic crime, and one that this film committed in the most egregious of ways.

This felt like watching the origin story of a cult leader and her most fanatical members, except nobody did anything remotely interesting. No, really. It had absolutely nothing interesting to say, and it seemed content in saying nothing in the longest, most arduous, and melodramatic way possible. It dragged on, and on, and on. The film is over two hours long, and yet, I could have sworn I was sat there for at least four times that. I have never been so close to walking out of a cinema. I'd rather have been forced to rewatch 'Tron: Ares'.

The story was so horrendously preachy and unsubtle. I thought perhaps there would be some moral or twist at the end of the story - was it really about one woman's trauma-imbued psychosis and the dangers of religious cults - but there was nothing of the sort. Instead, the film not only took great pains to glorify and sympathise with its cultish, colonialist characters and their bizarre behaviours, but doubled down on its severely pro-settler narrative multiple times. The film lacked any self-awareness, and featured some of the most cringe-worthy content I've seen in some time, including a baffling scene which presented the Shaker's land theft as divinely guided, chosen, and understood by the indigenous Americans. It was painful to watch a film so shallow and so self-aggrandizing.

By far the strongest and most consistent aspect of the film was its lead actress; Amanda Seyfried, who turned in a career-defining performance as 'Ann Lee', it must be said. She was genuinely incredible, so much so that it gutted me to be so bored and so disappointed by almost every other aspect of the film. She gave everything to the role, and produced, without question, her most diverse, committed, and believable performance so far. Another year and she would have received significantly more praise from critics worldwide.

The supporting performances were, in fairness, believable for what they were. I thought Lewis Pullman put in a very good shift, at times, though he also verged on awkward hilarity at others. The other fairly acclaimed or up-and-coming faces of the cast; Thomasin McKenzie, Matthew Beard, Christopher Abbott, and Viola Prettejohn, all turned in adequate performances, but the shallow screenplay was no equipped to provide them with an effective story.

Overall, whilst this film would likely be a lot more likeable for those of a Christian faith or background, it was not for me in the slightest. It might be an unfair notion to think about, but I do wonder whether or not this film's positive ratings have a lot to do with its predominantly white, Christian, and American, audience. It certainly feels like the kind of film that would do brilliantly for that specific audience. Either way, I blame myself for not researching the film more before I went to see it - I could have avoided a major dud, in my eyes.